TAMPA BAY: Since getting off to a flying start in 2011-12, the Steve Yzerman era in Tampa Bay has stalled considerably.
Heading into his fourth season as the club's general manager, the former Detroit Red Wings great is aiming to reverse the trend that has seen the Lightning miss out on the playoffs in each of the past two springs after making it to the Eastern Conference finals in 2010.
The Lightning are an exciting team to watch, but the club's high-powered offensive attack may need to dial it back a little in 2013-14 in order to comply with Cooper's new system. That doesn't mean he'll put a leash on Stamkos or St. Louis, but the rest of the forwards will be asked to chip in more at the back end. The slightest improvement on defense and in goal could be the difference in making the playoffs this season. Then again, treading water will likely mean a third straight season out of the postseason.

NASHVILLE: NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Making the playoffs has become so automatic for the Nashville Predators that they didn't react well to finishing below .500 for the first time in a decade.
They went shopping in a very big way hoping to make sure thatdoesn't happen again.
The Predators opened free agency signing five of the seven players they added on the first day. Right wing Viktor Stalberg from Stanley Cup champ Chicago is the key addition, and they also added Eric Nystrom, and Matt Hendricks and center Matt Cullen, who helped Carolina win the Stanley Cup in 2006.
"It shows all the commitment," captain Shea Weber said. "They made those moves, and they addressed the needs we have. They filled some spots, and obviously everyone's going to see what those guys are capable of. And we're going to see what they can do in the locker room as well."
Nashville will be looking for its eighth playoff berth in a decade this season trying to bounce back from a 16-23-9 record that put them 14th in the Western Conference.
"We feel like we're back to having the depth and the pieces to do what we need to do," Nashville coach Barry Trotz said.
The Predators will need scoring from the new players.
They averaged just 2.27 goals per game last season, tying Florida for the worst scoring average in the NHL. Stalberg is expected to be the biggest addition if he can prove that all he needed was more playing time after struggling to find ice time behind the offensive stars in Chicago. He tied for fifth in goals in Chicago despite ranking 20th in minutes per game last season.
"All the guys in the locker room expect us to be back in the playoffs this year and to make a run," Stalberg said. "We got what it takes in here. It's a matter of putting it all together and finding a way to win hockey games."

Both the Tampa Bay Lightning and Nashville Predators must continue to eagerly await the return of key contributors.

In the meantime, the visiting Lightning are expected to have some of their other banged-up players available Thursday night when they try to hand the Predators a fourth consecutive defeat.

Tampa Bay star Steven Stamkos continues to recover from a broken leg suffered Nov. 11, and he's eyeing a March 6 return - the Lightning's first game back home after this four-game trip. Stamkos, who has 14 goals and nine assists in 17 games, had hoped to play at least once prior to the Olympic break, then for Canada in Sochi, but wasn't ready.

"It did feel good (Feb. 5), but it feels even better now," he told the NHL's official website. "Maybe I wasn't as far along as I thought, knowing how much better it has felt now that I have kept working on it and taking a couple of days off. It's just going to continually get better and that's positive knowing it's doing that."

His coach agrees.

"Time is healing the wound," Jon Cooper said.

Time away also appears to have helped forward Valtteri Filppula, who is second on the team with 41 points but missed out on playing for Team Finland in Sochi after breaking his ankle Feb. 6. But he'll return Thursday, and teammates Tyler Johnson (foot) and defenseman Matt Carle (foot) are also expected to play.

While Tampa Bay (33-20-5) is among the top four teams in the Eastern Conference, it dropped four of six prior to the break. However, after scoring four goals in the previous three games, the Lightning beat Detroit 4-2 on Feb. 8 in their most recent contest.

"A win before the break puts everybody in a good mood," said Ben Bishop, who had dealt with a recent upper-body injury but has a 1.61 goals-against average in his last four starts.

Though the Lightning have totaled eight goals while losing three of four on the road, they face a Nashville team that has the third-fewest points (60) in the West and rode an 0-1-2 slide into the break.

"We just have to keep playing the same way and fight hard every game," defenseman Roman Josi said after Nashville's 5-2 home loss to Anaheim on Feb. 8. "From now on, every game is going to be a playoff game, and we just have to make a push."

The Predators (25-24-10) expect goaltender Pekka Rinne to help.

Out with a bacterial infection that popped up after undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his left hip Oct. 24, Rinne was cleared to increase his physical activity this week. Nashville has a 3.24 GAA since visiting Tampa Bay on Dec. 19, the worst in the league in that stretch.

"Our destination is to get Pekka back in the net at some point," coach Barry Trotz said. "Whenever that happens, that happens. It feels a lot better than it was a month ago or six weeks ago."

Star defenseman Shea Weber recorded three goals and three assists while helping Canada win gold in Sochi, but he went without a point in the last three games with Nashville.

Weber's Olympic teammate Martin St. Louis scored to help Tampa Bay snap a three-game skid against Nashville with a 4-2 victory Dec. 19.